1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a gateway card for adjusting communication protocols between different networks.
2) Description of the Related Art
Recently, the personal computers are of course, but even the home appliances such as the televisions and telephones have been equipped with the Internet connection function that makes it possible to connect these home appliances to the Internet.
When a user purchases such an apparatus, it is required to do settings so that the apparatus can be connected to an access point of the Internet. These settings are generally take lot of time and are tedious. Moreover, it is necessary to connect these apparatuses to telephone lines, to computers etc. These connections are generally complex and troublesome.
A gateway device called a home gateway or the like has attracted attention in recent years. What this device does is that it adjusts differences in communication protocols between the network at home and external networks including the Internet.
Precisely, all the devices in the home that have the Internet connection function are connected to this gateway device and the gateway device is connected to the public telephone line or other network. All the devices connected to the gateway device can be connected to the Internet so that tedious settings or complex wiring is not required.
Technology that is similar to the one described above has been disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 10-190855, 2001-168879, 7-93061, and 10-312370.
The gateway device saves time and reduces the workload on the user. However, the conventional gateway device has a problem in that it has high power consumption. From the viewpoint of home-use, the high power consumption increases the electric bills and is a great drawback.